0000000000441375
AUTHOR
M. Sorel
showing 104 related works from this author
Measurement of Coherent π+ Production in Low Energy Neutrino-Carbon Scattering
2016
We report the first measurement of the flux-averaged cross section for charged current coherent π+ production on carbon for neutrino energies less than 1.5 GeV, and with a restriction on the final state phase space volume in the T2K near detector, ND280. Comparisons are made with predictions from the Rein-Sehgal coherent production model and the model by Alvarez-Ruso et al., the latter representing the first implementation of an instance of the new class of microscopic coherent models in a neutrino interaction Monte Carlo event generator. We observe a clear event excess above background, disagreeing with the null results reported by K2K and SciBooNE in a similar neutrino energy region. The …
Measurement of inclusive neutral current pi(0) production on carbon in a few-GeV neutrino beam
2010
The SciBooNE Collaboration reports inclusive neutral current neutral pion production by a muon neutrino beam on a polystyrene target (C8H8). We obtain (7.7 +/- 0.5(stat) +/- 0.5(sys)) X 10(-2) as the ratio of the neutral current neutral pion production to total charged current cross section; the mean energy of neutrinos producing detected neutral pions is 1.1 GeV. The result agrees with the Rein-Sehgal model implemented in our neutrino interaction simulation program with nuclear effects. The spectrum shape of the pi(0) momentum and angle agree with the model. We also measure the ratio of the neutral current coherent pion production to total charged current cross section to be (0.7 +/- 0.4) …
Search for short baseline nu(e) disappearance with the T2K near detector
2015
8 pages.- 6 figures
Design and characterization of the SiPM tracking system of NEXT-DEMO, a demonstrator prototype of the NEXT-100 experiment
2013
NEXT-100 experiment aims at searching the neutrinoless double-beta decay of the Xe-136 isotope using a TPC filled with a 100 kg of high-pressure gaseous xenon, with 90% isotopic enrichment. The experiment will take place at the Laboratorio Subterraneo de Canfranc (LSC), Spain. NEXT-100 uses electroluminescence (EL) technology for energy measurement with a resolution better than 1% FWHM. The gaseous xenon in the TPC additionally allows the tracks of the two beta particles to be recorded, which are expected to have a length of up to 30 cm at 10 bar pressure. The ability to record the topological signature of the beta beta 0 nu events provides a powerful background rejection factor for the bet…
Search for Charged Current Coherent Pion Production on Carbon in a Few-GeV Neutrino Beam
2008
The SciBooNE Collaboration has performed a search for charged current coherent pion production from muon neutrinos scattering on carbon, \nu_\mu ^{12}C \to \mu^- ^{12}C \pi^+, with two distinct data samples. No evidence for coherent pion production is observed. We set 90% confidence level upper limits on the cross section ratio of charged current coherent pion production to the total charged current cross section at 0.67\times 10^{-2} at mean neutrino energy 1.1 GeV and 1.36\times 10^{-2} at mean neutrino energy 2.2 GeV.
Measurement of radon-induced backgrounds in the NEXT double beta decay experiment
2018
The measurement of the internal $^{222}$Rn activity in the NEXT-White detector during the so-called Run-II period with $^{136}$Xe-depleted xenon is discussed in detail, together with its implications for double beta decay searches in NEXT. The activity is measured through the alpha production rate induced in the fiducial volume by $^{222}$Rn and its alpha-emitting progeny. The specific activity is measured to be $(38.1\pm 2.2~\mathrm{(stat.)}\pm 5.9~\mathrm{(syst.)})$~mBq/m$^3$. Radon-induced electrons have also been characterized from the decay of the $^{214}$Bi daughter ions plating out on the cathode of the time projection chamber. From our studies, we conclude that radon-induced backgro…
Volume IV The DUNE far detector single-phase technology
2020
This document was prepared by the DUNE collaboration using the resources of the Fermi National Accelerator Laboratory (Fermilab), a U.S. Department of Energy, Office of Science, HEP User Facility. Fermilab is managed by Fermi Research Alliance, LLC (FRA), acting under Contract No. DE-AC02-07CH11359. The DUNE collaboration also acknowledges the international, national, and regional funding agencies supporting the institutions who have contributed to completing this Technical Design Report.
The Next White (NEW) detector
2018
[EN] Conceived to host 5 kg of xenón at a pressure of 15 bar in the ¿ducial volume,the NEXTWhite (NEW)apparatus is currently the largest high pressure xenon gas TPC using electroluminescent ampli¿cation in the world. It is also a 1:2 scale model of the NEXT-100 detector scheduled to start searching for ßß0¿ decays in 136Xe in 2019. Both detectors measure the energy of the event using a plane of photomultipliers located behind a transparent cathode. They can also reconstruct the trajectories of charged tracks in the dense gas of the TPC with the help of a plane of silicon photomultipliers located behind the anode. A sophisticated gas system, common to both detectors, allows the high gas puri…
Mitigation of backgrounds from cosmogenic 137 Xe in xenon gas experiments using 3 He neutron capture
2020
[EN] Xe-136 is used as the target medium for many experiments searching for 0 nu beta beta. Despite underground operation, cosmic muons that reach the laboratory can produce spallation neutrons causing activation of detector materials. A potential background that is difficult to veto using muon tagging comes in the form of Xe-137 created by the capture of neutrons on Xe-136. This isotope decays via beta decay with a half-life of 3.8 min and a Q(beta) of similar to 4.16 MeV. This work proposes and explores the concept of adding a small percentage of He-3 to xenon as a means to capture thermal neutrons and reduce the number of activations in the detector volume. When using this technique we f…
First results on ProtoDUNE-SP liquid argon time projection chamber performance from a beam test at the CERN Neutrino Platform
2020
The ProtoDUNE-SP detector was constructed and operated on the CERN Neutrino Platform. We thank the CERN management for providing the infrastructure for this experiment and gratefully acknowledge the support of the CERN EP, BE, TE, EN, IT and IPT Departments for NP04/ProtoDUNE-SP. This documentwas prepared by theDUNEcollaboration using the resources of the Fermi National Accelerator Laboratory (Fermilab), a U.S. Department of Energy, Office of Science, HEP User Facility. Fermilab is managed by Fermi Research Alliance, LLC (FRA), acting under Contract No. DE-AC02-07CH11359. This work was supported by CNPq, FAPERJ, FAPEG and FAPESP, Brazil; CFI, IPP and NSERC, Canada; CERN; MSMT, Czech Republi…
Neutrino interaction classification with a convolutional neural network in the DUNE far detector
2020
The Deep Underground Neutrino Experiment is a next-generation neutrino oscillation experiment that aims to measure CP-violation in the neutrino sector as part of a wider physics program. A deep learning approach based on a convolutional neural network has been developed to provide highly efficient and pure selections of electron neutrino and muon neutrino charged-current interactions. The electron neutrino (antineutrino) selection efficiency peaks at 90% (94%) and exceeds 85% (90%) for reconstructed neutrino energies between 2–5 GeV. The muon neutrino (antineutrino) event selection is found to have a maximum efficiency of 96% (97%) and exceeds 90% (95%) efficiency for reconstructed neutrino…
Boosting background suppression in the NEXT experiment through Richardson-Lucy deconvolution
2021
The NEXT collaboration: et al.
T2K neutrino flux prediction
2013
The Tokai-to-Kamioka (T2K) experiment studies neutrino oscillations using an off-axismuon neutrino beam with a peak energy of about 0.6 GeV that originates at the Japan Proton Accelerator Research Complex accelerator facility. Interactions of the neutrinos are observed at near detectors placed at 280 m from the production target and at the far detector-Super-Kamiokande-located 295 km away. The flux prediction is an essential part of the successful prediction of neutrino interaction rates at the T2K detectors and is an important input to T2K neutrino oscillation and cross section measurements. A FLUKA and GEANT3-based simulation models the physical processes involved in the neutrino producti…
Combined Analysis of Neutrino and Antineutrino Oscillations at T2K.
2017
T2K reports its first results in the search for CP violation in neutrino oscillations using appearance and disappearance channels for neutrino- and antineutrino-mode beams. The data include all runs from January 2010 to May 2016 and comprise 7.482 ×10^(20) protons on target in neutrino mode, which yielded in the far detector 32 e-like and 135 μ-like events, and 7.471 × 10^(20) protons on target in antineutrino mode, which yielded 4 e-like and 66 μ-like events. Reactor measurements of sin(2)2θ(13) have been used as an additional constraint. The one-dimensional confidence interval at 90% for the phase δCP spans the range (−3.13, −0.39) for normal mass ordering. The CP conservation hypothesis …
Large-angle production of charged pions by 3 GeV/c - 12.9 GeV/c protons on beryllium, aluminium and lead targets
2008
Measurements of the double-differential pi(+/-) production cross-section in the range of momentum 100 MeV/c <= p < 800 MeV/c and angle 0.35 rad <= theta < 2.15 rad in proton-beryllium, proton-aluminium and proton-lead collisions are presented. The data were taken with the HARP detector in the T9 beam line of the CERN PS. The pions were produced by proton beams in a momentum range from 3 GeV/c to 12.9 GeV/c hitting a target with a thickness of 5% of a nuclear interaction length. The tracking and identification of the produced particles was performed using a small-radius cylindrical time projection chamber (TPC) placed inside a solenoidal magnet. Incident particles were identified by an elabo…
Measurement ofK+production cross section by 8 GeV protons using high-energy neutrino interactions in the SciBooNE detector
2011
The SciBooNE Collaboration reports K+ production cross section and rate measurements using high energy daughter muon neutrino scattering data off the SciBar polystyrene (C8H8) target in the SciBooNE detector. The K+ mesons are produced by 8 GeV protons striking a beryllium target in Fermilab Booster Neutrino Beam line (BNB). Using observed neutrino and antineutrino events in SciBooNE, we measure d2σ/dpdΩ = (5.34 ±0.76) mb/(GeV/c x sr) for p + Be =K+ + X at mean K+ energy of 3.9 GeV and angle (with respect to the proton beam direction) of 3.7 degrees, corresponding to the selected K+ sample. Compared to Monte Carlo predictions using previous higher energy K+ production measurements, this mea…
Measurement of neutrino-induced charged-current charged pion production cross sections on mineral oil atEν∼1 GeV
2011
Using a high-statistics, high-purity sample of {nu}{sub {mu}-}induced charged current, charged pion events in mineral oil (CH{sub 2}), MiniBooNE reports a collection of interaction cross sections for this process. This includes measurements of the CC{pi}{sup +} cross section as a function of neutrino energy, as well as flux-averaged single- and double-differential cross sections of the energy and direction of both the final-state muon and pion. In addition, each of the single-differential cross sections are extracted as a function of neutrino energy to decouple the shape of the MiniBooNE energy spectrum from the results. In many cases, these cross sections are the first time such quantities…
Physics at a future Neutrino Factory and super-beam facility
2009
The conclusions of the Physics Working Group of the international scoping study of a future Neutrino Factory and super-beam facility (the ISS) are presented. The ISS was carried by the international community between NuFact05, (the 7th International Workshop on Neutrino Factories and Superbeams, Laboratori Nazionali di Frascati, Rome, June 21-26, 2005) and NuFact06 (Ivine, California, 24{30 August 2006). The physics case for an extensive experimental programme to understand the properties of the neutrino is presented and the role of high-precision measurements of neutrino oscillations within this programme is discussed in detail. The performance of second generation super-beam experiments, …
Measurements of the T2K neutrino beam properties using the INGRID on-axis near detector
2012
Precise measurement of neutrino beam direction and intensity was achieved based on a new concept with modularized neutrino detectors. INGRID (Interactive Neutrino GRID) is an on-axis near detector for the T2K long baseline neutrino oscillation experiment. INGRID consists of 16 identical modules arranged in horizontal and vertical arrays around the beam center. The module has a sandwich structure of iron target plates and scintillator trackers. INGRID directly monitors the muon neutrino beam profile center and intensity using the number of observed neutrino events in each module. The neutrino beam direction is measured with accuracy better than 0.4 mrad from the measured profile center. The …
High Voltage Insulation and Gas Absorption of Polymers in High Pressure Argon and Xenon Gases
2018
High pressure gas time projection chambers (HPGTPCs) are made with a variety of materials, many of which have not been well characterized in high pressure noble gas environments. As HPGTPCs are scaled up in size toward ton-scale detectors, assemblies become larger and more complex, creating a need for detailed understanding of how structural supports and high voltage insulators behave. This includes the identification of materials with predictable mechanical properties and without surface charge accumulation that may lead to field deformation or sparking. This paper explores the mechanical and electrical effects of high pressure gas environments on insulating polymers PTFE, HDPE, PEEK, POM …
Radiopurity control in the NEXT-100 double beta decay experiment
2013
An extensive material screening and selection process is underway in the construction of the "Neutrino Experiment with a Xenon TPC" (NEXT), intended to investigate neutrinoless double beta decay using a high-pressure xenon gas TPC filled with 100 kg of Xe enriched in 136Xe. Determination of the radiopurity levels of the materials is based on gamma-ray spectroscopy using ultra-low background germanium detectors at the Laboratorio Subterraneo de Canfranc (Spain) and also on Glow Discharge Mass Spectrometry. Materials to be used in the shielding, pressure vessel, electroluminescence and high voltage components and energy and tracking readout planes have been already taken into consideration. T…
Radon and material radiopurity assessment for the NEXT double beta decay experiment
2015
Artículo escrito por un elevado número de autores, solo se referencian el que aparece en primer lugar, el nombre del grupo de colaboración, si le hubiere, y los autores pertenecientes a la UAM
Measurement of the muon neutrino inclusive charged-current cross section in the energy range of 1–3 GeV with the T2K INGRID detector
2016
International audience; We report a measurement of the $\nu_{\mu}$-nucleus inclusive charged current cross section (=$\sigma^{cc}$) on iron using data from exposed to the J-PARC neutrino beam. The detector consists of 14 modules in total, which are spread over a range of off-axis angles from 0$^\circ$ to 1.1$^\circ$. The variation in the neutrino energy spectrum as a function of the off-axis angle, combined with event topology information, is used to calculate this cross section as a function of neutrino energy. The cross section is measured to be $\sigma^{cc}(1.1\text{ GeV}) = 1.10 \pm 0.15$ $(10^{-38}\text{cm}^2/\text{nucleon})$, $\sigma^{cc}(2.0\text{ GeV}) = 2.07 \pm 0.27$ $(10^{-38}\te…
Electroluminescence TPCs at the thermal diffusion limit
2019
Artículo escrito por un elevado número de autores, solo se referencian el que aparece en primer lugar, el nombre del grupo de colaboración, si le hubiere, y los autores pertenecientes a la UAM
Measurement of the neutrino component of an anti-neutrino beam observed by a non-magnetized detector
2011
Two independent methods are employed to measure the neutrino flux of the anti-neutrino-mode beam observed by the MiniBooNE detector. The first method compares data to simulated event rates in a high purity $\numu$ induced charged-current single $\pip$ (CC1$\pip$) sample while the second exploits the difference between the angular distributions of muons created in $\numu$ and $\numub$ charged-current quasi-elastic (CCQE) interactions. The results from both analyses indicate the prediction of the neutrino flux component of the pre-dominately anti-neutrino beam is over-estimated - the CC1$\pip$ analysis indicates the predicted $\numu$ flux should be scaled by $0.76 \pm 0.11$, while the CCQE an…
Measurement ofνμandν¯μinduced neutral current singleπ0production cross sections on mineral oil atEν∼O(1 GeV)
2010
MiniBooNE reports the first absolute cross sections for neutral current single {pi}{sup 0} production on CH{sub 2} induced by neutrino and antineutrino interactions measured from the largest sets of NC {pi}{sup 0} events collected to date. The principal result consists of differential cross sections measured as functions of {pi}{sup 0} momentum and {pi}{sup 0} angle averaged over the neutrino flux at MiniBooNE. We find total cross sections of (4.76 {+-} 0.05{sub stat} {+-} 0.40{sub sys}) x 10{sup -40} cm{sup 2}/nucleon at a mean energy of = 808 MeV and (1.48 {+-} 0.05{sub stat} {+-} 0.14{sub sys}) x 10{sup -40} cm{sup 2}/nucleon at a mean energy of = 664 MeV for {nu}{sub {mu}} and {bar {nu}…
Operation and first results of the NEXT-DEMO prototype using a silicon photomultiplier tracking array
2013
NEXT-DEMO is a high-pressure xenon gas TPC which acts as a technological test-bed and demonstrator for the NEXT-100 neutrinoless double beta decay experiment. In its current configuration the apparatus fully implements the NEXT-100 design concept. This is an asymmetric TPC, with an energy plane made of photomultipliers and a tracking plane made of silicon photomultipliers (SiPM) coated with TPB. The detector in this new configuration has been used to reconstruct the characteristic signature of electrons in dense gas, demonstrating the ability to identify the MIP and "blob" regions. Moreover, the SiPM tracking plane allows for the definition of a large fiducial region in which an excellent e…
Description and commissioning of NEXT-MM prototype: first results from operation in a Xenon-Trimethylamine gas mixture
2014
[EN] A technical description of NEXT-MM and its commissioning and first performance is reported. Having an active volume of ∼35 cm drift × 28 cm diameter, it constitutes the largest Micromegas-read TPC operated in Xenon ever constructed, made by a sectorial arrangement of the 4 largest single wafers manufactured with the Microbulk technique to date. It is equipped with a suitably pixelized readout and with a sufficiently large sensitive volume (∼23 l) so as to contain long (∼20 cm) electron tracks. First results obtained at 1 bar for Xenon and Trymethylamine (Xe-(2%)TMA) mixture are presented. The TPC can accurately reconstruct extended background tracks. An encouraging fu…
The mass-hierarchy and CP-violation discovery reach of the LBNO long-baseline neutrino experiment.
2014
The next generation neutrino observatory proposed by the LBNO collaboration will address fundamental questions in particle and astroparticle physics. The experiment consists of a far detector, in its first stage a 20 kt LAr double phase TPC and a magnetised iron calorimeter, situated at 2300 km from CERN and a near detector based on a high-pressure argon gas TPC. The long baseline provides a unique opportunity to study neutrino flavour oscillations over their 1st and 2nd oscillation maxima exploring the $L/E$ behaviour, and distinguishing effects arising from $\delta_{CP}$ and matter. In this paper we have reevaluated the physics potential of this setup for determining the mass hierarchy (M…
Measurement ofνμ-induced charged-current neutral pion production cross sections on mineral oil atEν∈0.5–2.0 GeV
2011
The authors would like to acknowledge the support of Fermilab, the Department of Energy, and the National Science Foundation in the construction, operation, and data analysis of the Mini Booster Neutrino Experiment.
Updated T2K measurements of muon neutrino and antineutrino disappearance using 1.5×1021 protons on target
2017
We report measurements by the T2K experiment of the parameters $\theta_{23}$ and $\Delta m^{2}_{32}$ governing the disappearance of muon neutrinos and antineutrinos in the three flavor neutrino oscillation model. Utilizing the ability of the experiment to run with either a mainly neutrino or a mainly antineutrino beam, the parameters are measured separately for neutrinos and antineutrinos. Using $7.482 \times 10^{20}$ POT in neutrino running mode and $7.471 \times 10^{20}$ POT in antineutrino mode, T2K obtained, $\sin^{2}(\theta_{23})=0.51^{+0.08}_{-0.07}$ and $\Delta m^{2}_{32} = 2.53^{+0.15}_{-0.13} \times 10^{-3}$eV$^{2}$/c$^{4}$ for neutrinos, and $\sin^{2}({\overline{\theta}}_{23})=0.4…
Measurement of the $\nu_{\mu}$ charged current quasi-elastic cross-section on carbon with the T2K on-axis neutrino beam
2015
17 pages.- 21 figures
SiPMs coated with TPB: coating protocol and characterization for NEXT
2012
[EN] Silicon photomultipliers (SiPM) are the photon detectors chosen for the tracking readout in NEXT, a neutrinoless \bb decay experiment which uses a high pressure gaseous xenon time projection chamber (TPC). The reconstruction of event track and topology in this gaseous detector is a key handle for background rejection. Among the commercially available sensors that can be used for tracking, SiPMs offer important advantages, mainly high gain, ruggedness, cost-effectiveness and radio-purity. Their main drawback, however, is their non sensitivity in the emission spectrum of the xenon scintillation (peak at 175 nm). This is overcome by coating these sensors with the organic wavelength shifte…
Energy calibration of the NEXT-White detector with 1% resolution near Q ββ of 136Xe
2019
Excellent energy resolution is one of the primary advantages of electroluminescent high pressure xenon TPCs, and searches for rare physics events such as neutrinoless double-beta decay ($\beta\beta0\nu$) require precise energy measurements. Using the NEXT-White detector, developed by the NEXT (Neutrino Experiment with a Xenon TPC) collaboration, we show for the first time that an energy resolution of 1% FWHM can be achieved at 2.6 MeV, establishing the present technology as the one with the best energy resolution of all xenon detectors for $\beta\beta0\nu$ searches.
Initial results on energy resolution of the NEXT-White detector
2018
One of the major goals of the NEXT-White (NEW) detector is to demonstrate the energy resolution that an electroluminescent high pressure xenon TPC can achieve for high energy tracks. For this purpose, energy calibrations with 137Cs and 232Th sources have been carried out as a part of the long run taken with the detector during most of 2017. This paper describes the initial results obtained with those calibrations, showing excellent linearity and an energy resolution that extrapolates to approximately 1% FWHM at Q$_{\beta\beta}$.
Electron drift and longitudinal diffusion in high pressure xenon-helium gas mixtures
2019
We report new measurements of the drift velocity and longitudinal diffusion coefficients of electrons in pure xenon gas and in xenon-helium gas mixtures at 1-9 bar and electric field strengths of 50-300 V/cm. In pure xenon we find excellent agreement with world data at all $E/P$, for both drift velocity and diffusion coefficients. However, a larger value of the longitudinal diffusion coefficient than theoretical predictions is found at low $E/P$ in pure xenon, below the range of reduced fields usually probed by TPC experiments. A similar effect is observed in xenon-helium gas mixtures at somewhat larger $E/P$. Drift velocities in xenon-helium mixtures are found to be theoretically well pred…
Measurement of neutrino oscillation by the K2K experiment
2006
We present measurements of nu_mu disappearance in K2K, the KEK to Kamioka long-baseline neutrino oscillation experiment. One hundred and twelve beam-originated neutrino events are observed in the fiducial volume of Super-Kamiokande with an expectation of 158.1^{+9.2}_{-8.6} events without oscillation. A distortion of the energy spectrum is also seen in 58 single-ring muon-like events with reconstructed energies. The probability that the observations are explained by the expectation for no neutrino oscillation is 0.0015% (4.3sigma). In a two flavor oscillation scenario, the allowed Delta m^2 region at sin^2(2theta) is between 1.9 and 3.5 x 10^{-3} eV^2 at the 90% C.L. with a best-fit value o…
Dependence of polytetrafluoroethylene reflectance on thickness at visible and ultraviolet wavelengths in air
2020
[EN] Polytetrafluoroethylene (PTFE) is an excellent diffuse reflector widely used in light collection systems for particle physics experiments. However, the reflectance of PTFE is a function of its thickness. In this work, we investigate this dependence in air for light of wavelengths 260 nm and 450 nm using two complementary methods. We find that PTFE reflectance for thicknesses from 5 mm to 10 mm ranges from 92.5% to 94.5% at 450 nm, and from 90.0% to 92.0% at 260 nm We also see that the reflectance of PIFE of a given thickness can vary by as much as 2.7% within the same piece of material. Finally, we show that placing a specular reflector behind the PTFE can recover the loss of reflectan…
Demonstration of background rejection using deep convolutional neural networks in the NEXT experiment
2021
[EN] Convolutional neural networks (CNNs) are widely used state-of-the-art computer vision tools that are becoming increasingly popular in high-energy physics. In this paper, we attempt to understand the potential of CNNs for event classification in the NEXT experiment, which will search for neutrinoless double-beta decay in Xe-136. To do so, we demonstrate the usage of CNNs for the identification of electron-positron pair production events, which exhibit a topology similar to that of a neutrinoless double-beta decay event. These events were produced in the NEXT-White high-pressure xenon TPC using 2.6 MeV gamma rays from a Th-228 calibration source. We train a network on Monte Carlo-simulat…
Measurement of double-differential muon neutrino charged-current interactions onC8H8without pions in the final state using the T2K off-axis beam
2016
We report the measurement of muon neutrino charged-current interactions on carbon without pions in the final state at the T2K beam energy using 5.734×1020 protons on target. For the first time the measurement is reported as a flux-integrated, double-differential cross section in muon kinematic variables (cosθμ, pμ), without correcting for events where a pion is produced and then absorbed by final state interactions. Two analyses are performed with different selections, background evaluations and cross-section extraction methods to demonstrate the robustness of the results against biases due to model-dependent assumptions. The measurements compare favorably with recent models which include n…
Dual baseline search for muon neutrino disappearance at0.5 eV2<Δm2<40 eV2
2012
The SciBooNE and MiniBooNE collaborations report the results of a νμ disappearance search in the Δ'm2 region of 0.5-40 eV2. The neutrino rate as measured by the SciBooNE tracking detectors is used to constrain the rate at the MiniBooNE Cherenkov detector in the first joint analysis of data from both collaborations. Two separate analyses of the combined data samples set 90% confidence level (CL) limits on νμ disappearance in the 0.5-40 eV2 Δm2 region, with an improvement over previous experimental constraints between 10 and 30 eV2
Measurement of the inclusive $\nu_{\mu}$ charged current cross section on iron and hydrocarbon in the T2K on-axis neutrino beam
2014
We report a measurement of the $\nu_\mu$ inclusive charged current cross sections on iron and hydrocarbon in the T2K on-axis neutrino beam. The measured inclusive charged current cross sections on iron and hydrocarbon averaged over the T2K on-axis flux with a mean neutrino energy of 1.51 GeV are $(1.444\pm0.002(stat.)_{-0.157}^{+0.189}(syst.))\times 10^{-38}\mathrm{cm}^2/\mathrm{nucleon}$, and $(1.379\pm0.009(stat.)_{-0.147}^{+0.178}(syst.))\times 10^{-38}\mathrm{cm}^2/\mathrm{nucleon}$, respectively, and their cross section ratio is $1.047\pm0.007(stat.)\pm0.035(syst.)$. These results agree well with the predictions of the neutrino interaction model, and thus we checked the correct treatme…
Measurement of the Ratio of theνμCharged-Current Single-Pion Production to Quasielastic Scattering with a 0.8 GeV Neutrino Beam on Mineral Oil
2009
Charged current single pion production (CC{pi}{sup +}) and charged current quasi-elastic scattering (CCQE) are the most abundant interaction types for neutrinos at energies around 1 GeV, a region of great interest to oscillation experiments. The cross-sections for these processes, however, are not well understood in this energy range. This dissertation presents a measurement of the ratio of CC{pi}{sup +} to CCQE cross-sections for muon neutrinos on mineral oil (CH{sub 2}) in the MiniBooNE experiment. The measurement is presented here both with and without corrections for hadronic re-interactions in the target nucleus and is given as a function of neutrino energy in the range 0.4 GeV < E{sub…
Absolute momentum calibration of the HARP TPC
2008
In the HARP experiment the large-angle spectrometer is using a cylindrical TPC as main tracking and particle identification detector. The momentum scale of reconstructed tracks in the TPC is the most important systematic error for the majority of kinematic bins used for the HARP measurements of the double-differential production cross-section of charged pions in proton interactions on nuclear targets at large angle. The HARP TPC operated with a number of hardware shortfalls and operational mistakes. Thus it was important to control and characterize its momentum calibration. While it was not possible to enter a direct particle beam into the sensitive volume of the TPC to calibrate the detect…
Observation of Electron Neutrino Appearance in a Muon Neutrino Beam
2014
The T2K experiment has observed electron neutrino appearance in a muon neutrino beam produced 295 km from the Super-Kamiokande detector with a peak energy of 0.6 GeV. A total of 28 electron neutrino events were detected with an energy distribution consistent with an appearance signal, corresponding to a significance of 7.3$\sigma$ when compared to 4.92 $\pm$ 0.55 expected background events. In the PMNS mixing model, the electron neutrino appearance signal depends on several parameters including three mixing angles $\theta_{12}$, $\theta_{23}$, $\theta_{13}$, a mass difference $\Delta m^2_{32}$ and a CP violating phase $\delta_{\mathrm{CP}}$. In this neutrino oscillation scenario, assuming $…
Search for Lorentz and CPT violation using sidereal time dependence of neutrino flavor transitions over a short baseline
2017
A class of extensions of the Standard Model allows Lorentz and CPT violations, which can be identified by the observation of sidereal modulations in the neutrino interaction rate. A search for such modulations was performed using the T2K on-axis near detector. Two complementary methods were used in this study, both of which resulted in no evidence of a signal. Limits on associated Lorentz and CPT-violating terms from the Standard Model extension have been derived by taking into account their correlations in this model for the first time. These results imply such symmetry violations are suppressed by a factor of more than 1020 at the GeV scale.
Search for Core-Collapse Supernovae using the MiniBooNE Neutrino Detector
2009
We present a search for core-collapse supernovae in the Milky Way galaxy, using the MiniBooNE neutrino detector. No evidence is found for core-collapse supernovae occurring in our Galaxy in the period from December 14, 2004 to July 31, 2008, corresponding to 98% live time for collection. We set a limit on the core-collapse supernova rate out to a distance of 13.4 kpc to be less than 0.69 supernovae per year at 90% C. L.
Electron drift properties in high pressure gaseous xenon
2018
[EN] Gaseous time projection chambers (TPC) are a very attractive detector technology for particle tracking. Characterization of both drift velocity and di¿usion is of great importance to correctly assess their tracking capabilities. NEXT-White is a High Pressure Xenon gas TPC with electroluminescent ampli¿cation, a 1:2 scale model of the future NEXT-100detector, which will be dedicated to neutrinoless double beta decay searches. NEXT-White has been operating at Canfranc Underground Laboratory (LSC) since December2016. The drift parameters have been measured using 83mKr for a range of reduced drift ¿elds at two di¿erent pressure regimes, namely 7.2 bar and 9.1 bar. Theresults have been comp…
Test of Lorentz and CPT violation with short baseline neutrino oscillation excesses
2011
The sidereal time dependence of MiniBooNE ν[subscript e] and ν[over-bar][subscript e] appearance data is analyzed to search for evidence of Lorentz and CPT violation. An unbinned Kolmogorov–Smirnov (K–S) test shows both the ν[subscript e] and ν[over-bar][subscript e] appearance data are compatible with the null sidereal variation hypothesis to more than 5%. Using an unbinned likelihood fit with a Lorentz-violating oscillation model derived from the Standard Model Extension (SME) to describe any excess events over background, we find that the ν[subscript e] appearance data prefer a sidereal time-independent solution, and the ν[over-bar][subscript e] appearance data slightly prefer a sidereal…
Search for Electron Antineutrino Appearance at theΔm2∼1 eV2Scale
2009
The MiniBooNE Collaboration reports initial results from a search for nu{sub m}u->nu{sub e} oscillations. A signal-blind analysis was performed using a data sample corresponding to 3.39x10{sup 20} protons on target. The data are consistent with background prediction across the full range of neutrino energy reconstructed assuming quasielastic scattering, 200<E{sub n}u{sup QE}<3000 MeV: 144 electronlike events have been observed in this energy range, compared to an expectation of 139.2+-17.6 events. No significant excess of events has been observed, both at low energy, 200-475 MeV, and at high energy, 475-1250 MeV. The data are inconclusive with respect to antineutrino oscillations suggested …
Volume I. Introduction to DUNE
2020
Journal of Instrumentation 15(08), T08008 (1-228) (2020). doi:10.1088/1748-0221/15/08/T08008
Measurement of the neutrino neutral-current elastic differential cross section on mineral oil atEν∼1 GeV
2010
We report a measurement of the flux-averaged neutral-current elastic differential cross section for neutrinos scattering on mineral oil (CH{sub 2}) as a function of four-momentum transferred squared, Q{sup 2}. It is obtained by measuring the kinematics of recoiling nucleons with kinetic energy greater than 50 MeV which are readily detected in MiniBooNE. This differential cross-section distribution is fit with fixed nucleon form factors apart from an axial mass M{sub A} that provides a best fit for M{sub A}=1.39{+-}0.11 GeV. Using the data from the charged-current neutrino interaction sample, a ratio of neutral-current to charged-current quasielastic cross sections as a function of Q{sup 2} …
Measurements of forward proton production with incident protons and charged pions on nuclear targets at the CERN Proton Synchroton
2010
Measurements of the double-differential proton production cross-section d(2 sigma)/dpd Omega in the range of momentum 0.5 GeV/c <= p < 8.0 GeV/c and angle 0.05 rad <= theta < 0.25 rad in collisions of charged pions and protons on beryllium, carbon, aluminium, copper, tin, tantalum, and lead are presented. The data were taken with the large acceptance HARP detector in the T9 beam line of the CERN Proton Synchrotron. Incident particles were identified by an elaborate system of beam detectors and impinged on a target of 5% of a nuclear interaction length. The tracking and identification of the produced particles was performed using the forward spectrometer of the HARP experiment. Results are o…
Energy resolution studies for NEXT
2011
This work aims to present the current state of simulations of electroluminescence (EL) produced in gas-based detectors with special interest for NEXT --- Neutrino Experiment with a Xenon TPC. NEXT is a neutrinoless double beta decay experiment, thus needs outstanding energy resolution which can be achieved by using electroluminescence. The process of light production is reviewed and properties such as EL yield and associated fluctuations, excitation and electroluminescence efficiencies, and energy resolution, are calculated. An EL production region with a 5 mm width gap between two infinite parallel planes is considered, where a uniform electric field is produced. The pressure and temperatu…
Indication of electron neutrino appearance from an accelerator-produced off-axis muon neutrino beam
2011
The T2K experiment observes indications of $\nu_\mu\rightarrow \nu_e$ appearance in data accumulated with $1.43\times10^{20}$ protons on target. Six events pass all selection criteria at the far detector. In a three-flavor neutrino oscillation scenario with $|\Delta m_{23}^2|=2.4\times10^{-3}$ eV$^2$, $\sin^2 2\theta_{23}=1$ and $\sin^2 2\theta_{13}=0$, the expected number of such events is 1.5$\pm$0.3(syst.). Under this hypothesis, the probability to observe six or more candidate events is 7$\times10^{-3}$, equivalent to 2.5$\sigma$ significance. At 90% C.L., the data are consistent with 0.03(0.04)$<\sin^2 2\theta_{13}<$ 0.28(0.34) for $\delta_{\rm CP}=0$ and a normal (inverted) hierarchy.
The dynamics of ions on phased radio-frequency carpets in high pressure gases and application for barium tagging in xenon gas time projection chambers
2022
NEXT Collaboration: et al.
Measurement of theνμcharged-current quasielastic cross section on carbon with the ND280 detector at T2K
2015
We thank the J-PARC staff for superb accelerator performance and the CERN NA61 Collaboration for providing valuable particle production data. We acknowledge the support of MEXT, Japan; NSERC, NRC, and CFI, Canada; CEA and CNRS/IN2P3, France; DFG, Germany; INFN, Italy; National Science Centre (NCN), Poland; RSF, RFBR, and MES, Russia; MINECO and ERDF funds, Spain; SNSF and SER, Switzerland; STFC, UK; and DOE, USA. We also thank CERN for the UA1/NOMAD magnet, DESY for the HERA-B magnet mover system, NII for SINET4, the WestGrid and SciNet consortia in Compute Canada, GridPP, UK. In addition participation of individual researchers and institutions has been further supported by funds from ERC (…
First Muon-Neutrino Disappearance Study with an Off-Axis Beam
2012
We report a measurement of muon-neutrino disappearance in the T2K experiment. The 295-km muon-neutrino beam from Tokai to Kamioka is the first implementation of the off-axis technique in a long-baseline neutrino oscillation experiment. With data corresponding to 1.43 × 10(20) protons on target, we observe 31 fully-contained single μ-like ring events in Super-Kamiokande, compared with an expectation of 104 ± 14(syst) events without neutrino oscillations. The best-fit point for two-flavor νμ → ντ oscillations is sin 2(2θ(23)) = 0.98 and |Δm(2)(32)| = 2.65 × 10(−3) eV2. The boundary of the 90% confidence region includes the points (sin2 (2θ(23)), |Δm(2)(32)|) = (1.0, 3.1 × 10(−3) eV2), (0.84, …
Precise measurement of the neutrino mixing parameter θ23 from muon neutrino disappearance in an off-axis beam
2014
New data from the T2K neutrino oscillation experiment produce the most precise measurement of the neutrino mixing parameter theta_{23}. Using an off-axis neutrino beam with a peak energy of 0.6 GeV and a data set corresponding to 6.57 x 10^{20} protons on target, T2K has fit the energy-dependent nu_mu oscillation probability to determine oscillation parameters. Marginalizing over the values of other oscillation parameters yields sin^2 (theta_{23}) = 0.514 +0.055/-0.056 (0.511 +- 0.055), assuming normal (inverted) mass hierarchy. The best-fit mass-squared splitting for normal hierarchy is Delta m^2_{32} = (2.51 +- 0.10) x 10^{-3} eV^2/c^4 (inverted hierarchy: Delta m^2_{13} = (2.48 +- 0.10) …
Present Status and Future Perspectives of the NEXT Experiment
2014
Gómez Cadenas, Juan José et al.
Sterile Neutrinos in Light of Recent Cosmological and Oscillation Data: a Multi-Flavor Scheme Approach
2008
Light sterile neutrinos might mix with the active ones and be copiously produced in the early Universe. In the present paper, a detailed multi-flavor analysis of sterile neutrino production is performed. Making some justified approximations allows us to consider not only neutrino interactions with the primeval medium and neutrino coherence breaking effects, but also oscillation effects arising from the presence of three light (mostly-active) neutrino states mixed with two heavier (mostly-sterile) states. First, we emphasize the underlying physics via an analytical description of sterile neutrino abundances that is valid for cases with small mixing between active and sterile neutrinos. Then,…
Calibration of the NEXT-White detector using 83m Kr decays
2018
The NEXT-White (NEW) detector is currently the largest radio-pure high-pressure xenon gas time projection chamber with electroluminescent readout in the world. It has been operating at Laboratorio Subterr'aneo de Canfranc (LSC) since October 2016. This paper describes the calibrations performed using 83mKr decays during a long run taken from March to November 2017 (Run II). Krypton calibrations are used to correct for the finite drift-electron lifetime as well as for the dependence of the measured energy on the event transverse position which is caused by variations in solid angle coverage both for direct and reflected light and edge effects. After producing calibration maps to correct for …
Large-angle production of charged pions by 3 GeV/c-12 GeV/c protons on carbon, copper and tin targets
2008
A measurement of the double-differential pi(+/-) production cross-section in proton-carbon, proton-copper and proton-tin collisions in the range of pion momentum 100 MeV/c <= p <800 MeV/c and angle 0.35 rad <= theta < 2.15 rad is presented. The data were taken with the HARP detector in the T9 beam line of the CERN PS. The pions were produced by proton beams in a momentum range from 3 GeV/c to 12 GeV/c hitting a target with a thickness of 5% of a nuclear interaction length. The tracking and identification of the produced particles was done using a small-radius cylindrical time projection chamber (TPC) placed in a solenoidal magnet. An elaborate system of detectors in the beam line ensured th…
Expected performance of an ideal liquid argon neutrino detector with enhanced sensitivity to scintillation light
2014
Scintillation light is used in liquid argon (LAr) neutrino detectors to provide a trigger signal, veto information against cosmic rays, and absolute event timing. In this work, we discuss additional opportunities offered by detectors with enhanced sensitivity to scintillation light, that is with light collection efficiencies of about $10^{-3}$. We focus on two key detector performance indicators for neutrino oscillation physics: calorimetric neutrino energy reconstruction and neutrino/antineutrino separation in a non-magnetized detector. Our results are based on detailed simulations, with neutrino interactions modelled according to the GENIE event generator, while the charge and light respo…
Event Excess in the MiniBooNE Search forν¯μ→ν¯eOscillations
2010
The MiniBooNE experiment at Fermilab reports results from a search for {nu}{sub {mu}{yields}{nu}e} oscillations, using a data sample corresponding to 5.66x10{sup 20} protons on target. An excess of 20.9{+-}14.0 events is observed in the energy range 475<E{sub {nu}}{sup QE}<1250 MeV, which, when constrained by the observed {nu}{sub {mu}} events, has a probability for consistency with the background-only hypothesis of 0.5%. On the other hand, fitting for {nu}{sub {mu}{yields}{nu}e} oscillations, the best-fit point has a {chi}{sup 2} probability of 8.7%. The data are consistent with {nu}{sub {mu}{yields}{nu}e} oscillations in the 0.1 to 1.0 eV{sup 2} {Delta}m{sup 2} range and with the evidence…
Improved measurement of neutral current coherent pi(0) production on carbon in a few-GeV neutrino beam
2010
The SciBooNE Collaboration reports a measurement of neutral current coherent pi(0) production on carbon by a muon neutrino beam with average energy 0.8 GeV. The separation of coherent from inclusive pi(0) production has been improved by detecting recoil protons from resonant pi(0) production. We measure the ratio of the neutral current coherent pi(0) production to total charged current cross sections to be 1.16 +/- 0.24) x 10(-2). The ratio of charged current coherent pi(+) to neutral current coherent pi(0) production is calculated to be 0.14(-0.28)(+0.30), using our published charged current coherent pion measurement.
Measurement of the neutrino-oxygen neutral-current interaction cross section by observing nuclear deexcitation gamma rays
2014
We report the first measurement of the neutrino-oxygen neutral-current quasielastic (NCQE) cross section. It is obtained by observing nuclear deexcitation $\gamma$-rays which follow neutrino-oxygen interactions at the Super-Kamiokande water Cherenkov detector. We use T2K data corresponding to $3.01 \times 10^{20}$ protons on target. By selecting only events during the T2K beam window and with well-reconstructed vertices in the fiducial volume, the large background rate from natural radioactivity is dramatically reduced. We observe 43 events in the $4-30$ MeV reconstructed energy window, compared with an expectation of 51.0, which includes an estimated 16.2 background events. The background …
Search for Muon Neutrino and Antineutrino Disappearance in MiniBooNE
2009
The MiniBooNE Collaboration reports a search for nu(mu) and nu(mu) disappearance in the Delta m(2) region of 0.5-40 eV(2). These measurements are important for constraining models with extra types of neutrinos, extra dimensions, and CPT violation. Fits to the shape of the nu(mu) and nu(mu) energy spectra reveal no evidence for disappearance at the 90% confidence level (C.L.) in either mode. The test of nu(mu) disappearance probes a region below Delta m(2)=40 eV(2) never explored before.
Large-angle production of charged pions with incident pion beams on nuclear targets
2009
Measurements of the double-differential pi(+/-) production cross section in the range of momentum 100 <= p <= 800 MeV/c and angle 0.35 <=theta <= 2.15 rad using pi(+/-) beams incident on beryllium, aluminum, carbon, copper, tin, tantalum, and lead targets are presented. The data were taken with the large-acceptance hadron production (HARP) detector in the T9 beam line of the CERN Proton Synchrotron. The secondary pions were produced by beams in a momentum range from 3 to 12.9GeV/c hitting a solid target with a thickness of 5% of a nuclear interaction length. The tracking and identification of the produced particles was performed using a small-radius cylindrical time projection chamber place…
Neutrino flux prediction at MiniBooNE
2009
The booster neutrino experiment (MiniBooNE) searches for nu(mu)->nu(e) oscillations using the O(1 GeV) neutrino beam produced by the booster synchrotron at the Fermi National Accelerator Laboratory). The booster delivers protons with 8 GeV kinetic energy (8.89 GeV/c momentum) to a beryllium target, producing neutrinos from the decay of secondary particles in the beam line. We describe the Monte Carlo simulation methods used to estimate the flux of neutrinos from the beam line incident on the MiniBooNE detector for both polarities of the focusing horn. The simulation uses the Geant4 framework for propagating particles, accounting for electromagnetic processes and hadronic interactions in the…
Sensitivity of a tonne-scale NEXT detector for neutrinoless double-beta decay searches
2021
The NEXT collaboration: et al.
Radiopurity control in the NEXT-100 double beta decay experiment: procedures and initial measurements
2013
[EN] The "Neutrino Experiment with a Xenon Time-Projection Chamber" (NEXT) is intended to investigate the neutrinoless double beta decay of Xe-136, which requires a severe suppression of potential backgrounds. An extensive screening and material selection process is underway for NEXT since the control of the radiopurity levels of the materials to be used in the experimental set-up is a must for rare event searches. First measurements based on Glow Discharge Mass Spectrometry and gamma-ray spectroscopy using ultra-low background germanium detectors at the Laboratorio Subterraneo de Canfranc (Spain) are described here. Activity results for natural radioactive chains and other common radionucl…
Demonstration of Single-Barium-Ion Sensitivity for Neutrinoless Double-Beta Decay Using Single-Molecule Fluorescence Imaging
2018
[EN] A new method to tag the barium daughter in the double-beta decay of Xe-136 is reported. Using the technique of single molecule fluorescent imaging (SMFI), individual barium dication (Ba++) resolution at a transparent scanning surface is demonstrated. A single-step photobleach confirms the single ion interpretation. Individual ions are localized with superresolution (similar to 2 nm), and detected with a statistical significance of 12.9 sigma over backgrounds. This lays the foundation for a new and potentially background-free neutrinoless double-beta decay technology, based on SMFI coupled to high pressure xenon gas time projection chambers.
Unexplained Excess of Electronlike Events from a 1-GeV Neutrino Beam
2009
The MiniBooNE Collaboration observes unexplained electronlike events in the reconstructed neutrino energy range from 200 to 475 MeV. With 6.46 x 10(20) protons on target, 544 electronlike events are observed in this energy range, compared to an expectation of 415.2 +/- 43.4 events, corresponding to an excess of 128.8 +/- 20.4 +/- 38.3 events. The shape of the excess in several kinematic variables is consistent with being due to either nu(e) and (nu) over bar (e) charged-current scattering or nu(mu) neutral-current scattering with a photon in the final state. No significant excess of events is observed in the reconstructed neutrino energy range from 475 to 1250 MeV, where 408 events are obse…
Measurement of the Inclusive NuMu Charged Current Cross Section on Carbon in the Near Detector of the T2K Experiment
2013
T2K has performed the first measurement of nu(mu) inclusive charged current interactions on carbon at neutrino energies of similar to 1 GeV where the measurement is reported as a flux-averaged double differential cross section in muon momentum and angle. The flux is predicted by the beam Monte Carlo and external data, including the results from the NA61/SHINE experiment. The data used for this measurement were taken in 2010 and 2011, with a total of 10.8 x 10(19) protons-on-target. The analysis is performed on 4485 inclusive charged current interaction candidates selected in the most upstream fine-grained scintillator detector of the near detector. The flux-averaged total cross section is (…
Volume III. DUNE far detector technical coordination
2020
The preponderance of matter over antimatter in the early universe, the dynamics of the supernovae that produced the heavy elements necessary for life, and whether protons eventually decay-these mysteries at the forefront of particle physics and astrophysics are key to understanding the early evolution of our universe, its current state, and its eventual fate. The Deep Underground Neutrino Experiment (DUNE) is an international world-class experiment dedicated to addressing these questions as it searches for leptonic charge-parity symmetry violation, stands ready to capture supernova neutrino bursts, and seeks to observe nucleon decay as a signature of a grand unified theory underlying the st…
First measurement of the muon neutrino charged current single pion production cross section on water with the T2K near detector
2017
The T2K off-axis near detector, ND280, is used to make the first differential cross section measurements of muon neutrino charged current single positive pion production on a water target at energies ∼0.8 GeV. The differential measurements are presented as a function of the muon and pion kinematics, in the restricted phase space defined by pπ+>200 MeV/c, pμ>200 MeV/c, cos(θπ+)>0.3 and cos(θμ)>0.3. The total flux integrated νμ charged current single positive pion production cross section on water in the restricted phase space is measured to be ⟨σ⟩ϕ=4.25±0.48(stat)±1.56(syst)×10-40 cm2/nucleon. The total cross section is consistent with the NEUT prediction (5.03×10-40 cm2/nucleon) and 2σ…
Measurement of the Inclusive Electron Neutrino Charged Current Cross Section on Carbon with the T2K Near Detector
2014
The T2K off-axis near detector, ND280, is used to make the first differential cross-section measurements of electron neutrino charged current interactions at energies ~1 GeV as a function of electron momentum, electron scattering angle and four-momentum transfer of the interaction. The total flux-averaged $\nu_e$ charged current cross-section on carbon is measured to be $1.11\pm0.09~(stat)\pm0.18~(syst)\times10^{-38} cm^2/nucleon$. The differential and total cross-section measurements agree with the predictions of two leading neutrino interaction generators, NEUT and GENIE. The NEUT prediction is $1.23\times10^{-38} cm^2/nucleon$ and the GENIE prediction is $1.08\times10^{-38} cm^2/nucleon$…
The T2K Experiment
2011
The T2K experiment is a long-baseline neutrino oscillation experiment. Its main goal is to measure the last unknown lepton sector mixing angle {\theta}_{13} by observing {\nu}_e appearance in a {\nu}_{\mu} beam. It also aims to make a precision measurement of the known oscillation parameters, {\Delta}m^{2}_{23} and sin^{2} 2{\theta}_{23}, via {\nu}_{\mu} disappearance studies. Other goals of the experiment include various neutrino cross section measurements and sterile neutrino searches. The experiment uses an intense proton beam generated by the J-PARC accelerator in Tokai, Japan, and is composed of a neutrino beamline, a near detector complex (ND280), and a far detector (Super-Kamiokande)…
Evidence of Electron Neutrino Appearance in a Muon Neutrino Beam
2013
The T2K Collaboration reports evidence for electron neutrino appearance at the atmospheric mass splitting, vertical bar Delta m(32)(2)vertical bar approximate to 2.4 X 10(-3) eV(2). An excess of electron neutrino interactions over background is observed from a muon neutrino beam with a peak energy of 0.6 GeV at the Super-Kamiokande (SK) detector 295 km from the beam's origin. Signal and background predictions are constrained by data from near detectors located 280 m from the neutrino production target. We observe 11 electron neutrino candidate events at the SK detector when a background of 3.3 +/- 0.4(syst) events is expected. The background-only hypothesis is rejected with a p value of 0.0…
Measurement of the single π0 production rate in neutral current neutrino interactions on water
2018
The single π0 production rate in neutral current neutrino interactions on water in a neutrino beam with a peak neutrino energy of 0.6 GeV has been measured using the POD, one of the subdetectors of the T2K near detector. The production rate was measured for data taking periods when the POD contained water (2.64×1020 protons-on-target) and also periods without water (3.49×1020 protons-on-target). A measurement of the neutral current single π0 production rate on water is made using appropriate subtraction of the production rate with water in from the rate with water out of the target region. The subtraction analysis yields 106±41±69 signal events where the uncertainties are statistical (stat.…
Neutrino induced weak pion production off the nucleon and coherent pion production in nuclei at low energies
2009
We present a microscopic model for neutrino induced one-pion production off the nucleon and its implementation for the purpose of calculating coherent pion production in nuclei. We further criticize the use of the Rein--Sehgal model for coherent pion production by low energy neutrinos. In particular, we show how the approximations in that model give rise to a much flatter differential cross section in the $\eta=E_\pi(1-\cos\theta_\pi)$ variable. We discuss the limitations intrinsic to any approach based on the partial conservation of the axial current hypothesis and the inability of such models to properly determine the angular distribution of the outgoing pion with respect to the direction…
Measurement of the production cross-section of positive pions in the collision of 8.9 GeV/c protons on beryllium
2007
The double-differential production cross-section of positive pions, $d^2\sigma^{\pi^{+}}/dpd\Omega$, measured in the HARP experiment is presented. The incident particles are 8.9 GeV/c protons directed onto a beryllium target with a nominal thickness of 5% of a nuclear interaction length. The measured cross-section has a direct impact on the prediction of neutrino fluxes for the MiniBooNE and SciBooNE experiments at Fermilab. After cuts, 13 million protons on target produced about 96,000 reconstructed secondary tracks which were used in this analysis. Cross-section results are presented in the kinematic range 0.75 GeV/c < $p_{\pi}$ < 6.5 GeV/c and 30 mrad < $\theta_{\pi}$ < 210 mrad in the l…
Measurement of inclusive pi(0) production in the charged-current interactions of neutrinos in a 1.3-GeV wide band beam
2010
In this paper we report on the measurement of the rate of inclusive $\pi^0$ production induced by charged-current neutrino interactions in a C$_8$H$_8$ target at a mean energy of 1.3 GeV in the K2K near detector. Out of a sample of 11,606 charged current neutrino interactions, we select 479 $\pi^0$ events with two reconstructed photons. We find that the cross section for the inclusive $\pi^0$ production relative to the charged-current quasi-elastic cross section is $$\frac{\sigma_{CC\pi^0}}{\sigma_{CCQE}}=0.426\pm0.032(stat.)\pm0.035(syst.)$$ The energy dependent cross section ratio is also measured. The results are consistent with previous experiments for exclusive channels on different ta…
Sensitivity of the NEXT experiment to Xe-124 double electron capture
2021
[EN] Double electron capture by proton-rich nuclei is a second-order nuclear process analogous to double beta decay. Despite their similarities, the decay signature is quite di erent, potentially providing a new channel to measure the hypothesized neutrinoless mode of these decays. The Standard-Model-allowed two-neutrino double electron capture has been predicted for a number of isotopes, but only observed in 78Kr, 130Ba and, recently, 124Xe. The sensitivity to this decay establishes a benchmark for the ultimate experimental goal, namely the potential to discover also the lepton-number-violating neutrinoless version of this process. Here we report on the current sensitivity of the NEXT-Whit…
Forward production of charged pions with incident protons on nuclear targets at the CERN Proton Synchrotron
2009
et al.
NEXT-100 Technical Design Report (TDR). Executive summary
2012
[EN] In this Technical Design Report (TDR) we describe the NEXT-100 detector that will search for neutrinoless double beta decay (ßß0v) in 136XE at the Laboratorio Subterráneo de Canfranc (LSC), in Spain. The document formalizes the design presented in our Conceptual Design Report (CDR): an electroluminescence time projection chamber, with separate readout planes for calorimetry and tracking, located, respectively, behind cathode and anode. The detector is designed to hold a maximum of about 150 kg of xenon at 15 bar, or 100 kg at 10 bar. This option builds in the capability to increase the total isotope mass by 50% while keeping the operating pressure at a manageable level. The readout pla…
Ba$^{2+}$ ion trapping by organic submonolayer: towards an ultra-low background neutrinoless double beta decay detector
2022
If neutrinos are their own antiparticles, the otherwise-forbidden nuclear reaction known as neutrinoless double beta decay ($\beta\beta 0\nu$) can occur, with a characteristic lifetime which is expected to be very long, making the suppression of backgrounds a daunting task. It has been shown that detecting (``tagging'') the Ba$^{+2}$ dication produced in the double beta decay ${}^{136}\mathrm{Xe} \rightarrow {}^{136}$Ba$^{+2}+ 2 e + (2 \nu)$ in a high pressure gas experiment, could lead to a virtually background free experiment. To identify these \Bapp, chemical sensors are being explored as a key tool by the NEXT collaboration . Although used in many fields, the application of such chemose…
Comparison of large-angle production of charged pions with incident protons on cylindrical long and short targets
2009
The HARP Collaboration has presented measurements of the double-differential pi(+/-) production cross section in the range of momentum 100 MeV/c <= p <= 800 MeV/c and angle 0.35 rad <=theta <= 2.15 rad with proton beams hitting thin nuclear targets. In many applications the extrapolation to long targets is necessary. In this article the analysis of data taken with long (one interaction length) solid cylindrical targets made of carbon, tantalum, and lead is presented. The data were taken with the large-acceptance HARP detector in the T9 beam line of the CERN proton synchrotron. The secondary pions were produced by beams of protons with momenta of 5, 8, and 12GeV/c. The tracking and identific…
Measurement of the production of charged pions by protons on a tantalum target
2007
38 páginas, 31 figuras, 4 tablas.-- PACS nrs.: 13.75.Cs; 13.85.Ni.-- El Pdf del artículo es la versión pre-print: arXiv:0706.1600v1.-- HARP Collaboration: et al.
Demonstration of the event identification capabilities of the NEXT-White detector
2019
[EN] In experiments searching for neutrinoless double-beta decay, the possibility of identifying the two emitted electrons is a powerful tool in rejecting background events and therefore improving the overall sensitivity of the experiment. In this paper we present the first measurement of the efficiency of a cut based on the different event signatures of double and single electron tracks, using the data of the NEXT-White detector, the first detector of the NEXT experiment operating underground. Using a 228Th calibration source to produce signal-like and background-like events with energies near 1.6 MeV, a signal efficiency of 71.6 ± 1.5 stat ± 0.3 sys% for a background acceptance of 20.6 ± …
Radiogenic backgrounds in the NEXT double beta decay experiment
2019
[EN] Natural radioactivity represents one of the main backgrounds in the search for neutrinoless double beta decay. Within the NEXT physics program, the radioactivity- induced backgrounds are measured with the NEXT-White detector. Data from 37.9 days of low-background operations at the Laboratorio Subterraneo de Canfranc with xenon depleted in Xe-136 are analyzed to derive a total background rate of (0.84 +/- 0.02) mHz above 1000 keV. The comparison of data samples with and without the use of the radon abatement system demonstrates that the contribution of airborne-Rn is negligible. A radiogenic background model is built upon the extensive radiopurity screening campaign conducted by the NEX…
Sensitivity of a tonne-scale NEXT detector for neutrinoless double beta decay searches
2020
The Neutrino Experiment with a Xenon TPC (NEXT) searches for the neutrinoless double-beta decay of Xe-136 using high-pressure xenon gas TPCs with electroluminescent amplification. A scaled-up version of this technology with about 1 tonne of enriched xenon could reach in less than 5 years of operation a sensitivity to the half-life of neutrinoless double-beta decay decay better than 1E27 years, improving the current limits by at least one order of magnitude. This prediction is based on a well-understood background model dominated by radiogenic sources. The detector concept presented here represents a first step on a compelling path towards sensitivity to the parameter space defined by the in…
Initial results of NEXT-DEMO, a large-scale prototype of the NEXT-100 experiment
2013
NEXT-DEMO is a large-scale prototype of the NEXT-100 detector, an electroluminescent time projection chamber that will search for the neutrinoless double beta decay of Xe-136 using 100-150 kg of enriched xenon gas. NEXT-DEMO was built to prove the expected performance of NEXT-100, namely, energy resolution better than 1% FWHM at 2.5MeV and event topological reconstruction. In this paper we describe the prototype and its initial results. A resolution of 1.75% FWHM at 511 keV (which extrapolates to 0.8% FWHM at 2.5 MeV) was obtained at 10 bar pressure using a gamma-ray calibration source. Also, a basic study of the event topology along the longitudinal coordinate is presented, proving that it…
Neutral Bremsstrahlung emission in xenon unveiled
2022
We present evidence of non-excimer-based secondary scintillation in gaseous xenon, obtained using both the NEXT-White TPC and a dedicated setup. Detailed comparison with first-principle calculations allows us to assign this scintillation mechanism to neutral bremsstrahlung (NBrS), a process that has been postulated to exist in xenon that has been largely overlooked. For photon emission below 1000 nm, the NBrS yield increases from about 10$^{-2}$ photon/e$^{-}$ cm$^{-1}$ bar$^{-1}$ at pressure-reduced electric field values of 50 V cm$^{-1}$ bar$^{-1}$ to above 3$\times$10$^{-1}$ photon/e$^{-}$ cm$^{-1}$ bar$^{-1}$ at 500 V cm$^{-1}$ bar$^{-1}$. Above 1.5 kV cm$^{-1}$ bar$^{-1}$, values that …
Characterization of a medium size Xe/TMA TPC instrumented with microbulk Micromegas, using low-energy gamma-rays
2014
NEXT-MM is a general-purpose high pressure (10 bar, $\sim25$ l active volume) Xenon-based TPC, read out in charge mode with an 8 cm $\times$8 cm-segmented 700 cm$^2$ plane (1152 ch) of the latest microbulk-Micromegas technology. It has been recently commissioned at University of Zaragoza as part of the R&D of the NEXT $0\nu\beta\beta$ experiment, although the experiment's first stage is currently being built based on a SiPM/PMT-readout concept relying on electroluminescence. Around 2 million events were collected during the last months, stemming from the low energy $\gamma$-rays emitted by a $^{241}$Am source when interacting with the Xenon gas ($\epsilon$ = 26, 30, 59.5 keV). The localized…
Energy calibration of the NEXT-White detector with 1% resolution near Qßß of 136Xe
2019
Excellent energy resolution is one of the primary advantages of electroluminescent high-pressure xenon TPCs. These detectors are promising tools in searching for rare physics events, such as neutrinoless double-beta decay (ßß0¿), which require precise energy measurements. Using the NEXT-White detector, developed by the NEXT (Neutrino Experiment with a Xenon TPC) collaboration, we show for the first time that an energy resolution of 1% FWHM can be achieved at 2.6 MeV, establishing the present technology as the one with the best energy resolution of all xenon detectors for ßß0¿ searches. [Figure not available: see fulltext.
Light sterile neutrino sensitivity at the nuSTORM facility
2014
A facility that can deliver beams of electron and muon neutrinos from the decay of a stored muon beam has the potential to unambiguously resolve the issue of the evidence for light sterile neutrinos that arises in short-baseline neutrino oscillation experiments and from estimates of the effective number of neutrino flavors from fits to cosmological data. In this paper, we show that the nuSTORM facility, with stored muons of 3.8 GeV/c $\pm$ 10%, will be able to carry out a conclusive muon neutrino appearance search for sterile neutrinos and test the LSND and MiniBooNE experimental signals with 10$\sigma$ sensitivity, even assuming conservative estimates for the systematic uncertainties. This…
Low-diffusion Xe-He gas mixtures for rare-event detection: electroluminescence yield
2020
[EN] High pressure xenon Time Projection Chambers (TPC) based on secondary scintillation (electroluminescence) signal amplification are being proposed for rare event detection such as directional dark matter, double electron capture and double beta decay detection. The discrimination of the rare event through the topological signature of primary ionisation trails is a major asset for this type of TPC when compared to single liquid or double-phase TPCs, limited mainly by the high electron diffusion in pure xenon. Helium admixtures with xenon can be an attractive solution to reduce the electron diffu- sion significantly, improving the discrimination efficiency of these optical TPCs. We have m…
Calibration of the NEXT-White detector using $^{83m}\mathrm{Kr}$ decays
2018
The NEXT-White (NEW) detector is currently the largest radio-pure high-pressure xenon gas time projection chamber with electroluminescent readout in the world. NEXT-White has been operating at Laboratorio Subterr\'aneo de Canfranc (LSC) since October 2016. This paper describes the calibrations performed with $^{83m}\mathrm{Kr}$ decays during a long run taken from March to November 2017 (Run II). Krypton calibrations are used to correct for the finite drift-electron lifetime as well as for the dependence of the measured energy on the event position which is mainly caused by variations in solid angle coverage. After producing calibration maps to correct for both effects we measure an excellen…
Ionization and scintillation response of high-pressure xenon gas to alpha particles
2013
High-pressure xenon gas is an attractive detection medium for a variety of applications in fundamental and applied physics. In this paper we study the ionization and scintillation detection properties of xenon gas at 10 bar pressure. For this purpose, we use a source of alpha particles in the NEXT-DEMO time projection chamber, the large scale prototype of the NEXT-100 neutrinoless double beta decay experiment, in three different drift electric field configurations. We measure the ionization electron drift velocity and longitudinal diffusion, and compare our results to expectations based on available electron scattering cross sections on pure xenon. In addition, two types of measurements add…
Mitigation of backgrounds from cosmogenic 137Xe in xenon gas experiments using 3He neutron capture
2021
136Xe is used as the target medium for many experiments searching for 0¿ßß. Despite underground operation, cosmic muons that reach the laboratory can produce spallation neutrons causing activation of detector materials. A potential background that is difficult to veto using muon tagging comes in the form of 137Xe created by the capture of neutrons on 136Xe. This isotope decays via beta decay with a half-life of 3.8 min and a Q ß of ~4.16 MeV. This work proposes and explores the concept of adding a small percentage of 3He to xenon as a means to capture thermal neutrons and reduce the number of activations in the detector volume. When using this technique we find the contamination from 137Xe …
Measurement of inclusive charged current interactions on carbon in a few-GeV neutrino beam
2010
We report a measurement of inclusive charged current interactions of muon neutrinos on carbon with an average energy of 0.8 GeV using the Fermilab Booster Neutrino Beam. We compare our measurement with two neutrino interaction simulations: NEUT and NUANCE. The charged current interaction rates (product of flux and cross section) are extracted by fitting the muon kinematics, with a precision of 6%-15% for the energy dependent and 3% for the energy integrated analyses. We also extract charged current inclusive interaction cross sections from the observed rates, with a precision of 10%-30% for the energy dependent and 8% for the energy integrated analyses. This is the first measurement of the …
Dependence of polytetrafluoroethylene reflectance on thickness at visible and ultraviolet wavelengths in air
2021
Polytetrafluoroethylene (PTFE) is an excellent diffuse reflector widely used in light collection systems for particle physics experiments. However, the reflectance of PTFE is a function of its thickness. In this work, we investigate this dependence in air for light of wavelengths 260 nm and 450 nm using two complementary methods. We find that PTFE reflectance for thicknesses from 5 mm to 10 mm ranges from 92.5% to 94.5% at 450 nm, and from 90.0% to 92.0% at 260 nm. We also see that the reflectance of PTFE of a given thickness can vary by as much as 2.7% within the same piece of material. Finally, we show that placing a specular reflector behind the PTFE can recover the loss of reflectance i…